:: shine online :: christine kirk | social muse communications

Hello Sweetline friends! Hard to believe it's nearing the end of July?! There have been a lot of neat things happening at Sweetline and quite a busy summer. It's good to be back on the blog and I'll be sharing all of these events with you. I also am happy to present a pretty amazing and fab SHINE ONLINE interview with the savvy, smart and lovely Christine Kirk, owner and visionary of Social Muse Communications. Christine runs a one-stop shop for PR and online communications 3.0. With years of lifestyle and brand experience, Christine can shape and extend your brand to the masses with elegance and style. Let's hear what she has to say about social media, authenticity and encouraging companies to jump into the social media mix.

You are the owner of Social Muse Communications, a social media/PR company that consults luxury travel, restaurant, technology and lifestyle brands looking to extend beyond traditional PR efforts and embrace and engage in social media tools and communities. What was the inspiration behind your company?

My clients are the inspiration for my company. New technologies, social media, and the recent economic downturn, have changed the face of the media landscape for good. Social media isn’t just a fad, it’s the biggest shift since the Industrial Revolution. Over the years, I have heard complaints from many clients that a traditional public relations campaign just isn’t cutting it for them anymore. There is no one way to reach your target audience. Simply securing a placement in a glossy magazine is not going to cut it anymore. A brand must get in front of consumers through many different channels of media – print, broadcast, online, blogs, and social networking sites. Social Muse Communications provides the ultimate in PR and Online Communications 3.0 – a unique blend of traditional media relations, online marketing, online advertising, and social media strategy.

Social media has grown rapidly in the last year and is an important role in a company's brand. What would you say to companies that are hesitant to getting into the social media mix?

A brand doesn’t have a choice whether or not to get involved in social media. If your brands not already engaging in social media, I guarantee that your customers and consumers are already engaging on your behalf. People are talking about your brand online whether you like it or not. What are they saying about you? The choice a brand has, is how well it engages with those people online, how it propels positive conversations forward, and how it responds to negative feedback. An expert online communications professional can help a brand navigate all that and more. If a brand is not actively engaging in social media, they are giving up control over conversations consumers are already having. By participating, you can help steer the perception, and make sure that your competitors aren’t swooping in and engaging with your customers…and ultimately stealing them away.

Many smaller companies and brands feel overwhelmed when it comes to engaging in social media - there's so much going on…all the time. What advice would you give for cutting through the "noise" and really connecting and e-relating to like-minded people?

Engaging with the public online requires a certain amount of finesse, and even a level of psychology, to be effective. Taking old PR and advertising messages and applying them to social media is not going to work. You’ll be ignored or even deleted from a user’s lifestream. It’s important to work with an online communications professional who understands how to be conversational with a brand’s fans while maintaining the brand’s integrity, and how to be engaging by being an excellent content producer, and creating online videos, photos, blog posts, etc. on behalf of your brand.

Authenticity and keeping it real are key elements for successful + quality social media. Like any relationship, being sincere is important. Many people want to share their products/services with their communities without coming off as pitching or salesy. What are tips for balancing messaging - personal and pitch?

I always recommend looking at the content a brand posts online in increments of 25%:

• 25% of the time: Provide information completely unrelated to the brand but that is relevant to the overall industry the brand is in
• 25% of the time: Respond directly to incoming comments and feedback from your fans
• 25% of the time: Post engaging content that fans can relate to – online videos, photos, blog posts, etc.
• 25% of the time: Announce company news. Yes, you can use more formal sales tactics here. If you’re doing all the other parts 75% of the time, users won’t mind being pitched once in a while.

Time management is a big challenge for many small business owners. People often want to just connect all of their social media platforms for efficiency. What are do you think about this and what are some tips for making this happen?
I dissuade anyone from doing this. Each social network is different and how you use Facebook vs. Twitter vs. LinkedIn vs. MySpace should thus be different. To sync them all together (meaning where you update one to update all the others) is missing the point of social media. Your Twitter followers might be a different demographic that your Facebook fans – they don’t want to hear the same things. Also, on Twitter, it’s acceptable and even encouraged to Tweet multiple times a day. On Facebook, most people don’t care to hear from a brand multiple times in the same day. Treat each social media tool and its users with respect, and learn what works, and what doesn’t work for each. Or, just hire an expert! Brand’s have dedicated staff for all sorts of positions, and social media is now one of the most significant forms of communications that spans across advertising, marketing, customer service, and brand reputation management. Doesn’t that deserve specific attention? It’s not about if you participate in social media, it’s about how well you’re doing it.

Thank you, Christine!

Click here to check out Social Muse Communications and to contact Christine. There are tons of goodies on her site. Christine also has a fabulous twitter community - you must follow her @luxuryprgal

Want to read more interviews from digitally savvy folks?
Click here for a full list of past SHINE ONLINE interviews on the Sweetline blog.

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:: shine online :: Jeremy Knight of Canned Banners

Welcome back to Sweetline's Shine Online series and hope you had a lovely holiday weekend! Today we have a great interview with Jeremy Knight, owner of Canned Banners. We love this digital resource - a place for companies to make their own flash-banners. Yes, your very own advertising! Many small business owners don't have a lot of extra money to spend on an advertising campaign and Canned Banners let's you be part of the ad mix as well as add reach to your company. Let's hear what Jeremy has to say about presentation (super important in 2010), ease of use and thoughts on using both advertising and social media as ways to extend your brand.

Your company, Canned Banners, is genius! You allow people to build a professional-looking Flash-based banner ad for a great price. What inspired you to create Canned Banners?

It really is genius, isn't it? The initial inspiration came from my business partner, Myles Younger, who is a client-side marketing guy. The first thing to know about Myles is that he's an expert complainer. He can craft an exquisite gripe on nearly any subject imaginable. One day he was complaining to me about running banner campaigns for his company using a traditional online ad agency. The process takes a lot of time and money and you never really know what your going to get until it's done. If you need a simple banner fast, there are relatively few options for you. He asked me if someone could make a website where people could plug their info into a template and get a banner ad fast and easily. I said yes, and soon the brilliance of Canned Banners was born unto this world.

Many small business owners have a ton of stuff on their plates and even getting their online presence up and running is challenging. How easy (both from a creative and an efficiency standpoint) is Canned Banners to use?

Really quite easy. Creating a banner with Canned Banners takes about 5 - 10 minutes. One of the key things that we strive to do is make the process quick and easy so you can get in and get out. Being small business owner's ourselves, we know that if it takes longer than that, no one is going to do it. Some similar sites out there give you a whole bunch of customization options which most people won't use or bother to figure out. Our site gives you a small handful of options so you don't need to spend all day creating a basic banner campaign.

We love your templated banners and advertising is an important step in a brand's evolution. What are your thoughts on balancing both ad campaigns and social media as platforms to share one's brand?

Remember those cereal commercials where at the end they would say, "part of a balanced breakfast"? And they'd show a bowl of cereal surrounded by a glass of juice, some milk, toast, a grapefruit, 3 waffles and a filet mignon? I think that's a good approach to online marketing. There's such a low cost to trying new online marketing tactics that you might as well try them all, review your results, and keep doing only the things that worked. You can spend a bit on search, a bit on social networking, a bit on display ads, and see how they all work. The online arena has such detailed ways to track success that it's easy to see what's working and what isn't.

Sweetline believes that design of a site and/or social media platform is important and should feel relevant to one's company. You guys seem to be passionate about design as well. Can you share your thoughts on design and the impact it can have?

I think design communicates straight to the viewer's subconscious. People get a "sense" of your brand by the design of your materials (banners, brochures, websites, logo etc). Take restaurant menus for instance. A one second look at a restaurant menu will immediately give you a "sense" of price, quality, type of cuisine, etc. even before you read the words. That's design doing it's work. The font, color, layout, imagery, etc, all working together to establish a tone for your brand. It works the same for menus as it does for your logo, website, banner ad, brochure or business card. All marketing materials have a tone and communicate something to the viewer's subconscious. The question is, what is that tone, and how do you control it. Design lets you control that tone. Businesses who don't put thought into design are communicating to the viewers' subconscious but they have no control over what they are saying.

Thanks, Jeremy! Click here to check out Canned Banners and get your ads up and running.

Check back every week for a new Shine Online interview that will inspire your online presence.

Up next |Brand new online blog presence, Bride Bound, and thoughts on being a newbie in a digital world.

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:: shine online :: Timothy Dahl | @Charles_Hudson

This week's Shine Online features the incredibly talented + couldn't be nicer Timothy Dahl of modern do-it-yourself network, Charles and Hudson. Timothy has extended his very popular blog/site to a network - five sites that cover anything and everything home design, renovations, green building, home protection, , kitchens, paint and diy. Using the the same style across the board, Timothy's thoughtful and solid online brands truly makes and impact AND has resourceful and engaging content. yes! Plus we want to share that Rebecca (that's me!) and Timothy met because of blogging. (One of Sweetline's favorite rewards from the blogosphere) Enjoy the interview that talks about presentation, engaging in social media (and being consistent) and the importance of defining your voice (and sticking with it!)

You are the creator of Charles and Hudson, the online destination for do-it-yourself enthusiasts. You truly have created a resource across your five websites. How have you defined your voice on all of your sites and kept them unique while infusing the Charles and Hudson style into each?

Great question! Separating the content has been easy but finding a consistent voice for each site has been more difficult. Although each site will find its own identity, the overarching theme will remain powered by Charles & Hudson which is focused on independent DIY resources and products within reach of most homeowners.

You have a roster of contributors that write for Charles and Hudson. How important is it to have your writers share their own personality while keeping your brand in tact? (this is for companies that will have multiple bloggers)

Before bringing anyone on board we require multiple writing samples and really prefer they have their own blog. The content of their site is secondary to their voice and personality. We've got industry experts, stay-at-home moms and professional writers who contribute to our sites and we require they all work to their strengths and interests which keeps the content accurate and enjoyable for our audience and our writers.

Charles and Hudson has a fantastic design - easy to read, modern, fresh and accessible. How important was the design of the sites when you were getting up and running? What advice would you give to someone just approaching their website design and build?

Design is everything. Invest time and a bit of money into sorting out a template that you can be happy with for an extended period of time. Make sure it's flexible enough to add widgets and features as you desire but a solid enough platform that can withstand a lot of traffic (being optimistic) and a lot of content.

Once a website really gets filled in and has some depth it will take on a life of its own. I'd recommend getting on your own domain and hosting the content yourself.

You have really embraced social media with Charles and Hudson. Did you create a social media plan when you first started? If so, how did you go about creating a strategy that spread the Charles and Hudson brand while managing your own time? Can you suggest one social media application that new-to-social media folks should consider?

You hit the nail on the head with "managing your own time". As Betty White said "Facebook is a waste of time." It definitely can be and the same can be said of Twitter. There are times when that's fine but it's important to focus on your goals when using a social media platform. Take note of benchmarks and measure your progress.

I've found Twitter be a great place to connect with industry folks, PR reps, retailers and other bloggers. Facebook has been better to connect with our general audience. This mix will undoubtedly change and It could be very different for you and your blog.

Try and determine where your audience "lives" and give them what they want. Don't make it tough for a fan or follower to decipher your message or content. They started following you for a reason, don't change the game.

{thank you, Timothy!}

Enjoy all of the Charles and Hudson sites right here and follow @Charles_Hudson (They are a rad twitter feed and often do promotions and giveaways right on twitter so stay tuned!)

Check back every Friday for a new Shine Online interview that will inspire your online presence. 

Up next | Jeremy Knight of Canned Banners chats about advertising, presentation and style.

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:: shine online :: meredith barnett of eBay's The Inside Source

This week's Shine Online is a goodie, folks! We have the lovely and savvy Meredith Barnett, Editorial Director of eBay's popular online design mag, The Inside Source. Meredith also created the very resourceful shopping social community, StoreAdore. We are lucky to have her on the Sweetline blog so enjoy taking a read of Meredith's perspective on presentation, defining one's voice and sticking with it plus the power of community.

You're the Editorial Director of ebay's The Inside Source, the rich online destination that " harnesses the eBay shopping community’s real time buying and selling activity to curate proprietary insights that shape the retail industry and American consumer’s lifestyles." You also provide tons of content that is relevant to the style of site you are producing - which makes reading the stories more cohesive and easy. I would say you have been very thoughtful about your "online voice". How important is it to define one's online voice and stick with it?

I think it's important to first be thoughtful about who your audience/reader/user is, and then the voice evolves from that.  The The Inside Source, which we describe in brief as eBay's digital style magazine, our audience is a female who is interest in style (fashion, collecting, interior design) but not an expert or a professional. She likely reads Daily Candy and Lucky magazine and loves to shop. She may be a rabid eBay shopper, or she may be more of a casual fan, but she is aware of the bounty available on the online marketplace, though she often feels overwhelmed or unsure about what to look for. Our job is to curate the eBay shopping experience (200 million products and counting!) to help her unearth the coolest, chicest most stylish stuff. Our "voice"--one I would describe as conversational and informative, but never didactic--comes from that.



We love The Inside's Source's idea of "curating" a large community. In this case, ebay! The online world of blogs and sites can be overwhelming and many social media newbies don't know where to begin to even start joining other social media communities. (there's millions of places to visit online!) What tips would you give to someone who is looking to engage/curate other social media communities that are relevant to their personality and/or company to then join?

The word "curate" is a hot one right now. It has been used to talk about everything from how vendors are chosen for a store or flea market to how music is selected for an event. (See this recent article in the NY Times on the topic: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/04/fashion/04curate.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=curate&st=nyt) At The Inside Source, our definition of "curate" is really to edit the eBay shopping experience according to what is fashionable, trendy or stylish. We do that through a variety of content types. For example, our trend reports look at what is hot from an "expert" perspective (what's on the fashion runways, etc) and interpret it using products that are available on eBay. We also do frequent profiles of major style makers to find out what they are obsessed with in fashion and interior design. It's always fascinating to see what these influential folks are searching for right now.

Examples of trend reports:

• ZigZag Trend: http://www.theinsidesource.com/topics/home_and_garden/view/trendlet-alert-zigzags/
• Neon Trend: http://www.theinsidesource.com/topics/fashion/view/suddenly-everywhere-high-voltage-neon/

Examples of profiles of style makers:

• Designer Lars Nilsson: http://www.theinsidesource.com/topics/fashion/view/designer-download-lars-nilsson/
• Designer Rachel Roy: http://www.theinsidesource.com/topics/fashion/view/designer-download-rachel-roy/
• Interior Decorator Miles Redd: http://www.theinsidesource.com/topics/home_and_garden/view/decorator-download-miles-redd/

If you are asking about curating a selection of online communities to be a part of for either personal or work purposes, I would say that the nice thing about the internet is that everything is interconnected. So start with a few sites or blogs you like (or ask friends) and then go to the ones they link to (check out the blogroll) and so on. For example, on The Inside Source, we often profile other sites and bloggers that we love or think are influential.

I also think traditional trade publications shouldn't be forgotten about, especially for business purposes. In fashion, for example, Women's Wear Daily is still a really important resource--whether you read it in print (like I do!) or online.

You created online store location community, StoreAdore, where you believe " in the wisdom of crowds." Love this idea in many ways, in particular, to the power and strength of social media communities. What advice would you give to a company that hasn't jumped into social media yet?

Also, you've given your community members a fantastic forum to share their voice about stores and the cities themselves. As social media has become more mainstream, has your own community become even more vocal and willing to share? What trends are you seeing this year?

StoreAdore.com (www.storeadore.com) is a web-based guide to the best boutique shopping around the country and online. Our site combines editorial reviews/profiles of stores and user reviews. We also allow users to participate in the conversation via message boards. My advice for other companies looking to build up a user community is 

• Don't underestimate the size of the audience you need to generate substantial user-generated content. I recently read a statistic that says that something like .1 percent of users who go on a site actually post content. You need a LOT of users to generate substantial content. 
• Think about ways that you can "reward" users for posting content and becoming "leaders" in the community -- Yelp and FourSquare have done a good job with that. 
• Think about how you can engage with -- not compete with -- the big guys

{thank you, Meredith!}

Definitely connect with Meredith! Follow @storeadore and @theinsidesource. 

Check back every Friday for a new Shine Online interview that will inspire your online presence.

Up next |The talented Timothy Dahl, creator of home design and diy network, Charles and Hudson.

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:: shine online :: liene stevens of splendid communications

We have a fantastic Shine Online interview today - the lovely Liene Stevens of Splendid Communications, an online media consultancy serving the wedding and lifestyle event industries. We discovered Liene through our twitter community and have been a fan ever since. Constantly offering resourceful + relevant + smart content, Liene's blog, Think Splendid, is a go-to for any level social media enthusiast. Let's hear what Liene has to say about her own inspiration, finding time and the importance of getting online in 2010.

You are the owner and the creative vision behind Splendid Communications, an online media consulting company for the wedding and event industry. What inspired you to start your company and how have you seen it evolve as the online world is evolving?

 I have been blogging personally since 1999 and blogging for my business since 2006, so the platform was very familiar to me. I learned early on that I could market my offline business through social media much more effectively and at a lower cost than through traditional means (magazine advertisements, publicists, etc).  I started receiving requests from other professionals in the wedding industry to help them with their online strategies, but it wasn't until a friend and colleague called and gave me a push in this direction that I took the leap of faith and started the consulting company.

Many creative companies are small and don't always have the time to blog or tweet with a thousand other things happening each day. How do you suggest setting up a stick-to-it editorial schedule?

If a company is going to blog or tweet, my number one piece of advice is to really know why they are jumping onto those platforms and to understand how they work. Social media is about engagement not a one-way monologue, so I really encourage people to also budget time to respond and interact with the people who follow them on those sites. For a calendar, it can be as simple as using Google Calendar or iCal and setting up a content topic for the different days a company is going to blog. For example, if a real estate agent were to blog three times a week, Mondays might be new trends in housing, Wednesdays might be things going on around the neighborhoods they sell in, and Fridays might be a round up of links form the various home decor blogs in order to inspire new home buyers.  The content plan would stay the same each week, and it makes it easier to write entries once the outline is there. Most of these posts can also all be written on the same day but scheduled to update at different times throughout the week.


Many companies want to blog and use social media to get the word out about their own products, sales, events, etc. but don't want to come off as sales-y. What would you recommend to people to keep it real while promoting their own business in the social media world?

Engage and interact with your followers. Social media is not self-promotion, yet most companies make the mistake of treating it as push-marketing. Be personal without crossing the line into TMI (too much information). 

What would you say to creative wedding brands that haven't embraced the importance of an online presence in 2010?

If your competitors aren't online yet, they will be soon. If you want to protect, or establish, your reputation as an industry leader, then be the first to engage in social media. A website is a business card; social media is the conversation.

{thanks, Liene!}

Check out Liene's truly resourceful blog - Think Splendid - right here and follow her on twitter @thinksplendid

Check back every Friday for a new Shine Online interview that will inspire your online presence.

Up next | Meredith Barnett, the Editorial Director of fab online design magazine, eBay's The Inside Source.

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:: shine online :: ali paul of paul + williams pr

We are thrilled to share our next Shine Online interviewee with you - Ali Paul - owner of bi-coastal lifestyle + fashion PR shop, Paul + Williams. As social media has become mainstream, adopting and sharing a brand's image and style via online platforms has become a great vehicle. As a seasoned publicist in the celebrity + fashion + lifestyle worlds, Ali successfully has evolved her company and, therefore, her roster of diverse clients to this medium. We also love the Paul + Williams brand new "old" site (Check out their site to see what we mean AND a great example of staying true to your own company's brand value and comfort) Let's hear what Ali has to say about the impact of social media, the modern press release, tips for pitching in the digital world and more.

1) You've been in the PR business for over ten years. How has the impact of social media, relationships and authenticity evolved how "buzz" is created around a brand?

Relationships are key when it comes to building a brand and pitching. Social Media and the ever evolving internet world has dramatically changed the PR field. Online media outlets (including social media outlets) have allowed brands to build buzz almost immediately, as opposed to the standard 3 month turnaround prior to online opportunities.

2) Many small business owners aren't always sure how to get into the mix when it comes to presenting their brand/product/company for press opportunities. What 3 tips can you offer for forming press relationships?

1. Persistence.
2. Know the outlets you are pitching, so you make an educated pitch (per outlet).
3. Meet in person with media contacts as face to face is much more effective. The internet has made it too easy not to have personal contact.


3) With the ever-growing social media community, a sort of unspoken "etiquette" has formed. What rules of thumb should small business owners follow when pitching to the press?

Study the outlets you are pitching. Know what they have to offer so you can pitch accordingly.

4) What are your thoughts on the modern-day press release? Should companies consider creating a press release or keep it loose and informal when contacting press?

It depends on what you're pitching, but as a general rule, press releases will always be important. They are a standard way of presenting a wealth of information. Again, depending on what you're pitching, the body of your email should never include every single detail so that's why it's important to also include a press release (when necessary as it largely depends on what you are pitching).

{Thanks, Ali! Click here to check out Paul + Williams}

Check back every Friday for a new Shine Online interview that will inspire your online presence.

Up next | Social Media guru, Liene Stevens

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:: shine online :: Gregory Han | @typefiend

Ok Sweetline friends, today is the launch of the Shine Online interview series, featuring digitally savvy folks. In Sweetline's eyes, each person or brand that you will see here has truly created an authentic, appealing and interesting online presence. They are great examples + resources to inspire you as you get your own fabulous brand up and running online.

For our first interview, we have the seriously on the pulse and quite hilarious (that would be comedy with an edge, people), Gergory Han. Helming Apartment Therapy's resourceful tech site, Unplggd, and former rainmaker for Apartment Therapy's LA team, Gregory is super thoughtful about the online world and believes in connecting and keeping it real. He's a passionate blogger and expresses himself on his equally popular personal blog and twitter page @typefiend. Let's hear Gregory's candid + interesting thoughts about jumping into the blogosphere, the quality of one's community, the importance of design and the creative outlet that blogging can be.

1) You are one of our fave online + savvy people! You really thrive online as a Managing Editor at Apartment Therapy (Unplggd) and your own persona, Typefiend (with multiple social media platforms in use). How do you feel about the online space and what would you say to people that are hesitant to jump in?

Go back! Stay away! It's like a jungle sometimes it makes me wonder how I keep from going under. I jest, of course. I feel like the online experience, both professionally and personally, is what you make of it. So if you go in with self-defeating preconceptions, you’ll likely come away feeling under or overwhelmed. Just like anything else, whether it be a new job, a relationship, a new home, we get what we bring into these opportunities, and working online is no different.

An interesting observation I’ve noted recently is the transition between the distinct states of being “scared to be online” and “doing it”. I’m of the age now that a lot my friends/peers are having children. Many of these people once avoided the idea of blogging, interacting online regularly, or even emailing with the same effort I normally put into avoiding folding my laundry. But recently I’ve watched as once leery luddites become passionate online participants once they had their child. Now many of these mothers and fathers find themselves writing daily, fuelled by their newfound love and pride of their lives. Where there was once fear, they now see opportunity to share with others and connect, and the switch went from fear to fun. Historically, the internet’s best success stories have the shared characteristic of once sane people people sharing something they’re particularly passionate about, whether it is Craigslist, eBay or ihazcheezburger.

2) How has blogging been a creative outlet for you? What do you do for other sources of inspiration - both on and offline?

Blogging has been an outlet in a myriad of ways, both planned and unexpected. My first blog was created after my father passed away, an emotional outlet for me to share a slice of life at a time when I was at a deep emotional low, bored out of my gourd living back at home while taking care of my mom as she got herself back onto her feet, with plenty of time on my hands to be painfully introspective in only a way a 20-something kid can be. In many ways I can attribute transitioning from a very shy person into a much more confident person, thanks to those first few wonderful forays writing and chatting online with people from around the world; the experiences gave me the confidence to be who I am now. It was also with that first blog where my partner for life, Emily, and I met (she left both the first comment ever on my site and also the first criticism after I reduced the font size!). That blog was like a nerd incubator. I may have only hatched into a turkey, but damn if I’m not one gloriously plumed turkey now!

In regards to offline outlets, I can’t recommend enough unplugging yourself from anything that requires a USB cable or battery at least once a week. And when I mean unplugging, I don’t mean carrying your cell phone on mute and checking your email just once an hour. One day a week, be alone with your thoughts or completely in the moment with your friends, significant others, bowl of Sea Monkeys, whomever. Creativity springs forth when you eliminate the static, and there’s plenty of static in most everyone’s lives these days that we won’t admit we bring to ourselves. If there is anyone to blame about life’s difficulties, one only has to look in the reflective screen of our iPhones to see who is most at fault.

My personal creative salvation is getting out to our State and National Parks. No website, magazine or TV show has inspired me more than a single glance out onto a glacial lake or a moment of quiet solitude in a springtime glen. Creativity invites itself over quite amazingly when you’re not looking out to existing cultural references. I think of it as a creative palate cleanser. And a little exercise never hurts either.

3) You were a BOL 4 panelist and you talked about twitter communities and the importance of quality vs. quantity. For social media newbies who see people with 1000s+ followers (how do they know/reach so many people??), what advice would you give on the meaning of quality people your community?

Those follower numbers...they’re the great big lie of Twitter. Certain types online like to use whatever means to fluff up their numbers, adding people en masse for the sake of showcasing 4 or 5 figures. They’re the equivalent of silicone implants: impressive at first glance, but totally fake. Don’t worry about followers. If you have something genuinely interesting worth sharing, and you do it regularly enough, people will find you.

But the results are not immediate, and that is why people take those short cuts. The problem for many new participants to social networking, besides impatience and forgetting to turn of CAP LOCK, is they forget the social aspect of it; being successful online requires regular two way participation. So if you’re on Facebook or Twitter, participate by not only sharing your favourite personal content or idea, but the ideas and content of your best friends, your colleagues in your industry and the occasional Cute Overload link. People dig cute animal pics like nothing else.

There is admittedly an elite category of Twitter personalities with huge followings. They’re mostly celebrities of one sort or another. Trying to compete with these people is a waste of time and actually counterproductive to the average person trying to promote their own business/service, since once you reach a certain tipping point, your ability to actually connect with others is marginalized. Measuring online quality for me is best interpreted as the ability to connect effectively with those you most have common ground with and interacting through these open avenues. Visualize the difference between talking at an intimate roundtable and having to shout at a busy street corner; it’s not hard to imagine which opportunity rewards more effectively. If you can do that via social networking/blogging, you’re doing a good job, whether it’s 75 followers or 7500.

4) Since many people opt to initially check out a client or person "online" (i.e their site or blog), site and blog design has become more important. What are your thoughts on the "look" of sites and/or blogs and would you encourage people to be pretty thoughtful about their design?

Visually enunciate. People often mistake style over substance, but a site can look stylishly arresting one moment and quickly fade into a frustrating experience if navigation isn’t considered. Use what I call a “5 Second Rule” when designing your site: a visitor should need no more than 5 seconds to understand what your site is about. Any more, and your site design is likely under or over-designed. Finding that middle ground requires planning and sometimes the aid of a professional graphic designer (everyone thinks themselves not only as a blogger, but also a designer, these days). Branding isn’t just about promotion, nor is design really about aesthetics. A well designed site address the challenge of communicating clearly, with an element of style as a careful embellishment. Hit that sweet spot, and your site will be characterized with unique personality while having enough universal appeal to welcome strangers and keep others coming back for more.

{Thanks, Gregory! Follow Gregory @typefiend}

Check back every Friday for a new Shine Online interview that will inspire your online presence.

Up next | Seasoned publicist, Ali Paul, shares her thoughts on brand evolution + the modern press release and more.

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:: welcome to the Sweetline blog ::

Hi everyone and welcome to new Sweetline blog, a counterpart to the Sweetline Agency site. We are thrilled to have recently launched Sweetline Agency, an online brand project management company. We will work with you on your full online presence.

So many lifestyle brands are doing incredible creative work for their own clients and customers but haven't full embraced their full online presence. As we get our own blog for Sweetline up and running, we'll be sharing creative ideas, thoughts, tips and style for creating and maintaining your social media voice that works for your own brand. 2010 is the year for you! People are talking so join the conversation and build your community.

Want to learn more? Check out some of the relevant and interesting blog links and the Sweetline site.

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